BPS Blog

Monday August 30, 2010 ~ A Good Monday Morning Coffee Quote

'Coffee is the best thing to douse the sunrise with.'

~ Terri Guillemets

Friday August 27, 2010 ~ TGIF Pineapple Mojito

It's Friday!  Chill out with this new twist on an old minty fave....

Pineapple Mojito

1 1/2 oz Light Rum
1/2 oz Dr. Smoothie 100% Crushed Fruit Smooth Lime
1/4 oz Dr. Smoothie 100% Crushed Fruit Lemon-ADE
1/2 oz Dr. Smoothie 100% Crushed Fruit Pineapple Paradise
2 Lime Wedges, 5-8 Mint Leaves, Soda Water

Combine Lemon-ADE and mint in glass and muddle. Combine Rum, Smooth Lime mix, and Pineapple Paradise mix in a shaker with ice...shake...pour into glass with mint and Lemon-ADE, stir, top with soda water, and garnish with lime wedge. Aaaaaah!

Wednesday August 25, 2010 ~ Industry Snippets

Seems like I’ve run into quite a few coffee industry news snippets and happenings the past week, so I thought I’d share a few:

-  The Mid Atlantic Northeast Artisan Coffee Conference (MANE) – Let’s start with one that BPS is sponsoring!  The MANE event takes place Oct 8-10 in Pawtucket, RI.   “MANE is a 2 1/2 day coffee conference for baristas. Chock full of educational classes, hands on workshops on alternative brewing, espresso extraction on THREE La Marzocco Linea paddle machines, and features keynote speaker Sarah Allen (editor of Barista Magazine).”  Pre-registration is required, so check out their facebook page for more info.

-  First Annual Barista Camp – The Specialty Coffee Association (SCAA) and the Barista Guild of America (BGA) have announced the inception of Camp-Pull-A-Shot.  Camp includes classes, certifications, world cup team competitions, and more!  Check out the SCAA or BGA websites for more info.

-  Entry Fees for 2011 Barista Competition Season Announced – Fresh Cup magazine reported on the SCAA’s updated entry fees for the 2011 Barista Competition season, and the fees are going up….significantly!  BGA members pay $150 and non-members pay $300 (last year’s fees were $25 for members and $50 for non-members).  Better start saving and looking for sponsors now.  Check out the USBC website for details (although I didn’t see the latest on fees posted there yet).  The new season kicks off in January.

-  The price of coffee beans hit an 11 year high on Monday!!!  Read more about it in this NPR release.

Tuesday August 17, 2010 ~ Summer Flower Recipes

I was feeling inspired by Colorado’s summer flowers and Monin’s unique flavor offerings, so I decided to create a couple of recipes featuring flowers.  That’s right, today you should drink your summer bouquet!

The Sparkling Rose Lemonade

2 oz Boulder Organic Lemonade Concentrate

6 oz Sparkling water

¾  oz Monin Rose Syrup

Combine ingredients in a 16 oz cup.  Fill cup with ice.  Garnish with a lemon wedge.

Sweet Jasmine and Magnolia Iced Tea

1 Numi Magnolia Puerh Green Tea Bag

4 oz Hot Water

¾ oz Monin Jasmine Syrup

Steep Numi Magnolia Puerh Green Tea Bag in hot water for 4 minutes.  Remove bag and fill cup with ice; swirl until ice is melted.  Add Monin Jasmine syrup; stir.  Fill cup with ice and garnish with a flower, sprig of lavender, or mint leaf.

Friday August 13, 2010 ~ Halloween in Seattle

Coffee Fest Seattle is only a couple of months away….are you attending?  The show kicks off on Friday, October 29 and will wrap up on Halloween (Sunday 31).  There’s been a bit of controversy surrounding Coffee Fest and the SCAA’s annual The Event as of late.  The SCAA is in negotiations with the city of Seattle in an attempt to hold The Event in the Emerald City in 2014, 2015, 2017, 2018, and possibly 2020 and 2021.  Coffee Fest folks are none to happy about the encroachment and made their views known in a letter sent to all members of the SCAA and by posting about it on Facebook.  Read more about the SCAA v. Coffee Fest showdown and opinions in the current Barista Magazine and Blog.

Whatever the outcome might be, Coffee Fest seems to be making moves to compete with The Event.  This year’s Seattle show will include new classes and seminars featuring:  Single Cup Brewing and Extraction, Social Media Workshop, Micro Lot Cupping Workshops, Loose Tea 101, Global Trends in Coffee Consumption, Developing a Training Program to Produce Exceptional Baristas, and many more.  Many of the classes are free to attendees, so make sure to check out the Coffee Fest website for the complete list.  Also on tap are the Pacific Natural Foods Top Cup Challenge (Soy recipe competition), the Aroma Challege (it’s tough, but interesting!), and the NEW World Latté Art Championship.  If you’re in the coffee biz and have never been to Seattle, Coffee Fest is the perfect excuse to go and explore.  I, for one, am interested in checking out some of the new offerings and hanging out in a great city!